In why you reckon the narrator and the other man do not hold edward for ransom.

They don't ask for ransom because they want money right away so they can eat.

Why do they need money right away?

The men say they are very hungry, but they don't have any money to buy food.

They can't get any kind of donation either and the hunger is getting hard to bear.

For this reason, they decide to rob a rich white man, so they would have immediate money to satisfy their hunger.

The hunger is so violent that they don't even realize they can get more money by keeping the man kidnapped and asking for a ransom payment.

This question is about "Why you Reckon" written by Langston Hughes, who was an author who used to portray the challenges of black society.

More information about Langston Hughes at the link:

if you break down the data from the global footprint network, china exerts far more pressure on its ecosystems per capita than america in terms of crops, grazing, foresting, and fishing. but where america blows everybody out of the water is carbon emissions per capita